The Truth About Making Personal Exceptions For Your Eating Plan

If you find yourself in a Mexican restaurant like I did here, order the chicken fajitas! No, they are not clean. But they are the cleanest thing on the menu. See? Personal exceptions. They are okay. Life happens. Just breathe!

We’ve all done it. We look at a not-so clean food item and think, “What the heck! I eat clean most of the time, this one little thing won’t hurt me.“. Does this hurt us? Is it really a big deal?

I’m not talking about having a “treat” meal once a day and calling that “okay”. I’m talking about the little things we have to do to make clean eating fit our lifestyle.

(For the purpose of making my point, I’m going to switch the term “eating plan” with “food supply”. I think my point will be made much clearer this way.)

I’m here to scream from the roof tops that this does not, in fact, hurt us. The truth is, we all make exceptions with our food supply. Maybe you eat clean, but also include protein powder in your eating plan <no, it’s not clean. gasp!!>. Or maybe you’ve converted everything in your kitchen to clean eating, except that coffee creamer you can’t seem to give up (although you really should try to work on that one. Have you read the ingredient list? Ick!).

Are these deal breakers? Should we toss the baby out with the bathwater just because we used a different soap?

There are so many ways to make exceptions in your food supply, and the fact is, that clean eating truly is a very customizable way of life. It’s really very basic when you realize that all you are doing is eating real food. That’s it. That’s the basis for clean eating. That’s all you have to do to call yourself a clean eater. The number of times you eat per day is a personal choice. The amount of food you eat is a personal choice. The food combinations you follow is a personal choice. Managing macros, carb cycling, calorie cycling, working out, brushing your teeth, getting dressing in the morning…. yup, you guessed it… all a personal choice. But to be a clean eater, you just have to go back to basics.

Eat real food.

All the time.

But maybe you’re like me and you can’t have dairy, so you use the store bought, unsweetened almond milk. Maybe you’re vegan and packaged, vegan breakfast patties are the only way you’ll get breakfast on a busy morning. Maybe, maybe, maybe. It all comes down to you and your lifestyle. It also comes down to how strict you feel comfortable being with your own food supply.

I know many clean eaters that won’t touch anything that isn’t organic. That’s great, but I also know a lot of clean eaters who just cannot afford organic food because they have a large family to feed or are on a very tight budget.

Is it wrong to make these decisions?

The truth is, any choice that gets you closer to eating 100% clean is the right choice. But there are exceptions that will arise, and that’s okay. There’s nothing wrong with that. If you eat 100% clean, 80-90% of the time, guess what? You’re still a clean eater! If you eat 100% clean, 100% of the time, but you don’t have time to make your own almond milkso you buy the stuff at the store, guess what? You’re still a clean eater! If you purchase lean, ground turkey that isn’t organic, guess what? You’re still a clean eater!!

Yes, I agree this can make things a little more complicated for those trying to learn what clean eating is all about. But I personally don’t view clean eating as a diet. This is where I differ considerably from clean eating plans and “diets” on the market today. In my opinion, however you approach this is fine. The idea is just to clear the garbage out of your food supply. To eat REAL food, as close to 100% of the time as possible.

So if you’re new to this, you may want guidelines to help you learn how to get started. And there is nothing wrong with that. We all need a little help getting started. But once you get the hang of it, yes, even you will make exceptions. Why? Because we are all individuals with individual needs. None of us can or will eat the same way. That’s why I don’t subscribe to the idea of a “diet”. I live by the broader concept of clean eating.

JUST. EAT. REAL. FOOD.

ON A PERSONAL NOTE: I’ve entered a contest at ABC (tv) for a new show that’s coming up about a food blogger called Young & Hungry. I have 6 challenges coming up, the first of which I completed today, based on a free kit I was sent with 6 different items. I would love it if you would give me a quick vote! The winner will have their blog mentioned on national tv! If you are so inclined, please find my entry here. My entry is somewhere around the last entry. Thanks!Disclosure: I was sent a free basket filled with 6 items, one for each challenge. All opinions are my own.

About The Gracious Pantry

Who me? I'm Tiffany, a cookbook author, food lover, mom and wannabe Elvis when I'm in the shower or driving in my car.

STANDARD DISCLOSURE: In order to support this blog, I may receive compensation or other types of remuneration for talking about products or services and/or providing a link to said products or services from this blog. However, all opinions are my own and I will only endorse those products or services which I truly feel are of value to my readers. I also use affiliate links in some of my posts for companies such as for Amazon.com, eMeals.com or LaptopLunches.com, among others. I can take no responsibility for how those companies do business however.

Comments

I appreciate what you had to say! There’s so many varieties of eating “clean” out there. It could get overwhelming. I choose the simplest way possible that fits my schedule/budget etc. Thanks for sharing!

Thank you for letting people know that there is no guilt trip associated with clean eating. Just as in my physical, spiritual and emotional life, I try to make the best/right decisions each day to the best of my ability. We are all a work in progress and learning as we go…. As always, you have just a lot of common sense!

Great post! The truth is there isn’t really ONE thing that makes a diet clean or not. Like you said, we all make our exceptions where they make sense and where they fit into our lives. I don’t call myself a clean eater – I eat whole foods about 90% of the time and whatever I want the rest and consider myself an IIFYM (if it fits your macros) eater. But I also know that food is fuel and my body runs better on less processed foods. Some people see themselves as clean eaters but allow a cheat meal once a week, others like me build treats into our macros. Frankly, if you’re even thinking about the quality of your food and diet, you’re doing something right! Julia

I used to feel guilty about not eating all organic produce, but I decided that non-organic broccoli is better than no broccoli. I agree that you have to find what works for your lifestyle. I have a vegan protein shake every morning, because I consider it healthy and easy, and it’s better for me than a sausage biscuit at a drive through. I think we are too hard on ourselves sometimes. I enjoyed today’s subject!

All great reminders! I try to buy organic, but like J said, it gets so expensive and I have a family of 4 to feed! I grow my own organic in the summer and buy from roadside stands and overall do the best I can.

Once, I was told when grocery shopping that to eat clean, you should steer your cart around the perimeter of the store, avoiding the overly processed middle section. All I know is that I want my kids to eat healthier than I did when I was a kid!!

I loved your article! My holistic consultant says you can’t be 100% perfect (what I’d like to be!) She says 80%/20%. I am EXTREMELY dedicated to my new lifestyle and it shows. I’ve kept 20# off for over a year now. And I love what I am eating! I never feel deprived!

Thank you so much for this! I have recently started eating clean with a few exceptions such as adding sugar and creamer to my coffee (ah, the horror!!). I am eventually going to switch to black coffee and find an alternative to make it taste less rich. But, I have only been eating clean this last week. I ALREADY feel a difference. My version of eating clean is eating tons of fruit and veggies, and cutting out overly processed foods. I have also stopped eating large portions, and eat 6 meals a day. B, S, L, S, D, optional snack. I have more energy, and I feel light and well, confident (I didn’t think you could feel confident just from eating food). Yesterday was a disaster for me, I didn’t have a chance to prep so I left the house without eating. Ended up stopping at McDonald’s and then didn’t eat again until I was with a friend and we went to a burger joint at 9pm. But I am not discouraged, and realize that the smoothie and kale and eggs I eat this morning will taste even better. I just wanted to say thank you for all the hard work you put into this site, I will be spending some time on here today reading and collecting recipes. I needed to read this! Thanks!

Viktoria – My pleasure! I’m happy it helped in some way! All you can do is the best you can. When things get messed up, just get back on track at your next meal instead of next week. That’s the difference between a diet and a lifestyle! 😀 You’re doing great!!!

About

The Gracious Pantry is an ever-growing collection of real food recipes and cooking information. My focus is to further support the real food movement and inspire people to store, prep and cook with real food. Read more about Tiffany...